Texas Volleyball Opens Tonight

by Bdub on Aug 24, 2007 4:20 PM CDT in News Comment 5 comments

Bumped from the diaries. The Gregory Gazelles get things started with a terrific non-conference matchup with Penn State.

#4 Texas Volleyball opens its season tonight at #3 Penn State at 6:00 PM Central. The two matches against the Nittany Lions shouldn't serve as a representation of the entire season to come, but they should be able to tell us a lot about the off-season progress of the team, as well as the new freshmen. I look forward to Brandy Magee's return to a Texas uniform as well, and am excited to see her contribute a great deal in her senior season.

The match is available live online.

Clicking the "Friday" button at the above link will take you to CSTV's online coverage, and you have to register to watch it. It's a quick email registration without a confirmation email; just be sure you remember what address you give should you ever need to log on again.

Hook 'Em! BEAT PENN STATE!

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HELP!

Great tip for live feed video. I am hungry for the season and need some advice for the best online (subscription or free) live feed webcast of the games this season. I tried ESPN last season and was mildly satisfied. Any advice on others?

Cheers from Italy!

by omsdoc on Aug 25, 2007 1:20 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

A quiet night from Ashley Engle

= a loss for the Horns.

Ashley ended the night with only 7 kills and 5 digs, and Texas was dispatched with ease last night, 23-30, 34-32, 22-30, 24-30. Two bright spots on the night were Destinee Hooker, who nearly had a double-double on the night, and top recruit Julian Faucette, who did manage one in her first game as a Horn.

Texas gets another shot at PSU tonight.

Game Recap

Officially a Limey Longhorn

by patienthornsfan on Aug 25, 2007 1:48 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Engle

I think Engle's quiet night was in part due to the new offensive scheme. They were running a 6/2 (6 hitters, 2 setters) with Moriarty and Engle both setting. (Notice the 18 assists for Engle.) This is different than the 5/1 they ran last season with only Moriarty setting. What that does is move Paolini to the outside to hit and block for Moriarty when she is front row, which is, in theory, a good thing. What it does that I don't agree with, though, is remove any threat for Engle to hit out of the back row.

If you notice, too, the total kills from each team. Our 51 was nothing on PSU's 71. I think the offensive struggles came from the 6/2 they were running. It is harder, in my experience, to run a 6/2 because you have to get comfortable with two different setters. Volleyball is all about timing. It isn't easy to get your timing perfect with one setter, much less to have to adjust to a different person when Engle is in the back row setting. Just my two cents on the 6/2.

Here's to hoping they go back to the 5/1 for tonight's match.

For something positive, I was really impressed with Faucette. She should have an outstanding year. Destinee also showed no signs of letting up after her tremendous freshman season.

"Here's to Revielle, the cutest girl in College Station."

by Bdub on Aug 25, 2007 11:56 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Different day, same result

Texas was humiliated in a 3-1 loss to PSU on Saturday (30-19, 13-30, 21-30, 24-30). The only bright spots again were Faucette and Hooker.

PSU looks like at Final Four team already, Texas most definetly does not. I wouldn't be surprised for them to fall out of the Top 10 in the next poll.

So much for Texas to work on after this weekend, and so little time before the Big XII season starts. A disappointing start indeed.

Game Recap

Officially a Limey Longhorn

by patienthornsfan on Aug 26, 2007 1:20 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

saturday's match

I'd like to think they switched back to the 5/1 for tonight's match, but I didn't get the chance to watch the match online so I didn't get to see. I'll go back and look at the numbers to find out.

If they did indeed switch back to the 5/1, and still had a tough time finding offense, I'm a little worried. But it is important to consider that Texas was going in to this match unsure of their offensive scheme for the year. They're still in the testing phase. Hopefully the upcoming tournament in Houston can help them solidify that against lesser opponents, and the mildly challenging tune-up match against Pepperdine back in Gregory should bring some confidence heading into conference play.

The future still looks bright.

"Here's to Revielle, the cutest girl in College Station."

by Bdub on Aug 26, 2007 1:32 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs